Daisy Chainsaw was a British band that received a little bit of fame in the U.S. for their song “Love Your Money.” They were much more appreciated in Europe than the States. I think I remember seeing the video on 120 Minutes on MTV which led me to buy the e.p. I love the trashy, lo-fi sound which was a little more unique in the late 80’s and early 90’s when the band was active. I think they were ahead of their time, and I’m still shocked at how great “Love Sick Pleasure” sounds. Unfortunately, I never had a chance to hear them live.

You might remember the song “Dizz Knee Land” from the early eighties, however dada has been quietly making music ever since the early 90’s. I’m not knocking the song (I actually like despite it being overplayed on the radio at the time), but if that’s all you’ve ever heard then you are really missing out. My band was lucky enough to open for them many years ago when they were touring for the album “dada.” This is one of my favorite tracks from the CD.

Like this:

Tonight’s sketch is inspired by a song off of Green Day’s second album “Kerplunk.” I remember first hearing this album, and how it sparked a revival in the West Coast punk sound. Green Day was one of the many bands that were prominent in the Bay Area Punk scene. The sound is slightly more pop and friendlier than my favorites from the early 80’s east coast scene. Most importantly, Green Day had a sense of humor.

Though the band broke up in 2000, I still find myself listening to their album “Wack-Ass Tuba Riff” pretty regularly. The album featured James Iha on the song “Microwave” and D’Arcy from Smashing Pumpkins on a couple of tracks as well. Me and my wife always laugh about this song, because it reminds of us our first apartment in Denton. Just like MC No Joke G, we didn’t have a microwave. We had to use the oven to get our food hot.

Sunset Rubdown features Spencer Krug and Dan Boeckner of Wolf Parade, and Dante DeCaro of Hot Hot Heat. If you’re a fan of any of these bands then you’ll definitely like Sunset Rubdown. The song titles on the latest album “Dragonslayer” seem to tell a story though I haven’t quite figured out if it’s an indie-rock opera yet.

Like this:

Today’s sketch is inspired by Canadian guitarist Duane Andrews who runs the gamut of folk, django & jazz. Andrews’s interpretation of the jazz standard “Caravan” is upbeat and whimsical, and for some reason reminds me of a line of ants foraging the forest floor.

Mates of State is probably one of my favorite bands of the last decade. They have continued to release solid albums, and their live shows are one of the best I’ve ever seen. We’ve seen them 2 or 3 times and never been disappointed. It’s amazing how a simple two piece band can fill a room with such energy. In honor of the husband/wife approach to writing songs, I’ve asked my wife to contribute a sketch to the project. We both developed concepts independently, and I brought the final sketch together with a loose photoshop collage. The notebook paper/pencil sketches represent her take on the song while the marker sketches represent my take. Though we both interpreted the song to have different meanings our two approaches worked together to provide an idea that captures the lyrics, feel of the band and more importantly the spirit of how Mates of State collaborates.

I’ve only recently discovered Cricket Taylor & The Electro-Magnetics. I went to see The Backsliders a few weeks back and they happened to be one of the opening bands. I was completely blown away by the bluesy, soulfulness of the band backed by the sultry sounds of guitarist/singer Cricket Taylor. I spoke to the drummer after the show to try and buy a CD, but he said that it wasn’t out yet. I was told that it would be out soon. I don’t think it’s been released yet, but you can listen to 3 tracks on their site. “Never Too Late” being my favorite of the bunch. Needless to say the show that night was incredible, because I always love discovering new bands and The Backsliders was a perfect compliment. Hopefully, these two bands will team up for more shows together.